Songs of praise, a time to say goodbye and a celebration of life for Alton Sterling.
“Big-hearted, sweet, kind, selfless person,” said said Abdullah Muflahi, the owner of the Triple S Food Mart. “He made himself a place in everyone’s heart.”
Hundreds of people, including Sterling’s friends and family, gathered inside the F.G. Clark Activity Center on Southern University’s Campus to pay their respects to the 37-year-old father of five.
” When they had you on the ground, the Lord came to your rescue,” said one of Sterling’s nephews. “Now, you being with him is the way that they blessed you.”
Civil rights activists from near and far watched Sterling depart, and no protests from inside of the arena, but for many, one message still remains.
“…Because we matter, because Alton matters,” said Reverend Al Sharpton. “We can stop this nation because we matter. We don’t have no inferiority complex. We have an inferior judicial system that does not protect all of it’s citizens equally.”
“We hear a lot in our community about healing. Total healing can only be fully recognized when our elected officials repent,” said East Baton Rouge Metro Councilwoman Chauna Banks-Daniel. “The Black Lives Movement has upped the level of discourse and critique in racial politics. We need to listen.”